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Inventory of the Outdoor Advertising Association of America Slide Library, 1891-1994

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Descriptive Summary

Title
Outdoor Advertising Association of America Slide Library, 1891-1994
Creator
Outdoor Advertising Association of America
Extent
27 Linear Feet;
62,933 Items
Repository
Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library, Duke University
Language
English.
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Administrative Information

Access Restrictions
Collection is open for research.
However, patrons must sign the Acknowledgment of Legal Responsibility and Privacy Rights form before using this collection.
Also, all or portions of this collection may be housed off-site in Duke University's Library Service Center. Consequently, there may be a 24-hour delay in obtaining these materials.
Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library to use this collection.
Use Restrictions
The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Outdoor Advertising Association of America Slide Library, Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library, Duke University.
Provenance
The Outdoor Advertising Association of America Slide Library was transferred to the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library from Fairleigh Dickinson University in 1996.
Processing of this collection was supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Processing Information
There was already some arrangement to the collection when it came to Duke University, and this is reflected in the choice of series maintained. The Topical Series, Subseries II, was created at Duke out of the many slides that arrived unsorted. Product categories in this subseries are those used by the industry itself. A few subgroups within Topical Series, Subseries I are labeled "Miscellaneous." Some of these miscellaneous groups are extensive and should not be overlooked in a comprehensive search.
The collection contains a few negatives and loose transparencies, especially in the Award Nominees Series. These were sleeved and interfiled with the slides. Information from most of the slides in the collection was entered into the Resource for Outdoor Advertising Description (ROAD) database (available in early 2003). An "SL" number was assigned to an individual slide and placed on the slide itself, while also being used as the database record number. Certain letter combinations are restricted to certain series, but they do not necessarily match the first letter of a corresponding series or subseries. Approximate dates found on slides were usually included in the database, but many dates could not be confirmed. Gaps were left in some slide sleeves to show divisions between groups of slides that originally were banded or boxed together. Older boxlists with old notebook designations may also be found in this repository. Old slide notebook designations were maintained on the new slide sleeves and in the ROAD database. Box number prefixes (e.g. CH, TP) indicate particular series except in the case of the small series at the end of the collection, all placed together in boxes labeled "TT1" and "TT2."
Processed by Lisa C. Chandek-Stark and Lynn Pritcher.
Completed April 2002
Encoded by Lisa C. Chandek-Stark
This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.
            

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Historical Note

The Outdoor Advertising Association of America Slide Library was created by officials in the Outdoor Advertising Association of America ( OAAA) and member organizations. OAAA is the primary professional and trade association representing the outdoor advertising industry, and was founded to promote outdoor advertising interests in the U.S. OAAA members own and operate billboards, street furniture, transit, or other outdoor advertising displays. Members also include service providers to the industry, users of the outdoor medium and others supporting its goals.

A Few Significant Dates in Outdoor Advertising History

1891 OAAA was founded as the Associated Bill Posters' Association of the US and Canada (ABPA).
1901 Outdoor advertising company Foster and Kleiser opened for business in Portland and Seattle; the company later was known as Patrick Media, then Eller, then Clear Channel.
1906 ABPA changed its name to Associated Bill Posters and Distributors of the United States and Canada.
ca. 1910Association set national standards for outdoor advertising and established the numbers of panels to be sold in each market.
1912Association changed its name to the Poster Advertising Association, Inc. (PAA).
1912-1913 PAA established an Education Committee to encourage public service advertising donations.
1916The National Outdoor Advertising Bureau was formed to inspect showings and to conduct the outdoor advertising portion of ad agency business.
1920The Art Directors Club was organized, establishing standards for commercial arts through competitions and the identification of categories of commercial art.
1925 PAA and the Painted Outdoor Advertising Association merged to become OAAA. The Fulton Group and the Cusack Co. combined to become the General Outdoor Advertising Company.
1930 First National Contest and Exhibit of Outdoor Advertising Art was held under the auspices of the Outdoor Advertising Department of the Advertising Council of the Chicago Association of Commerce.
1941-1942 Advertising Council (initially, during WWII, the War Advertising Council) founded as a non-profit organization to coordinate selected public service campaigns.
1946Raymond Loewy poster panel adopted as new 24-sheet structure for billboards.
1962The first modern "multivision" painted bulletin displayed in Sacramento, Calif. Triangular sections permitted display of three different designs on a single unit.
1990sDigital technology affected creation of advertising designs and display. Painted boards were replaced by computer-generated formats.

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Collection Overview

The Outdoor Advertising Association of America Slide Library spans the years 1891 through the 1990s, with the bulk of the collection originating in the 1950s and later. The collection documents over a hundred years of outdoor advertising primarily in the United States, plus some international campaigns from several other continents. The Slide Library is a large collection, almost entirely comprised of slides of billboards, exhibiting a grand range of graphic artistry, advertising campaigns, and marketing strategies. A smaller group of images supports the ad collection with views of artwork, billboard construction and other related images. In addition to over 62,000 slides, there are a few early glass slides, as well as transparencies, a small number of paper files, and six audiocassettes accompanying slide presentations. Many images were submitted by outdoor advertising companies over a number of years to the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA) as entries in annual national competitions to determine the best poster designs. The OAAA currently sponsors the OBIE Awards, which were preceded by awards programs under various names and sponsorships starting in the early 1930s. The award is modeled after the ancient Egyptian obelisk, considered by many the earliest form of outdoor advertising. Indeed much of the collection can be seen as evidence of this awards program although only the Award Nominees Series contains slides labeled as such. Other slides probably were transferred to OAAA when companies cleaned out their back files, though the precise sources of many items are unknown. The slides were maintained at OAAA primarily as a large supply of creative examples for member companies. Researchers interested in the following subjects may find the Outdoor Advertising Association of America Slide Library especially helpful: the outdoor advertising medium itself, advertising awards, advertising design, billboard construction, and commercial art, as well as the many outdoor advertising companies, advertisers, and advertising campaigns represented.
The images, designed to attract mass audiences, depict part of American society's history - a history of consumer attitudes and desires. The collection is therefore a valuable tool in formulating not only a pictorial development of the outdoor advertising industry but of societal norms and opinions. The ads speak to the creativity of artists and designers, but they also convey a rich story of how these creators saw society at large, especially in the United States. Perhaps more importantly, ads reveal how corporations and designers felt America wanted to see itself. Such visual richness underlies the primary goals of selling goods and services and promoting ideas for the public good. There are thousands of product advertisements but also many public service ads, political issue ads, and even Happy Birthday greetings in the collection. Billboards are one direct link from corporate America, various interest groups, and their advertising specialists to consumers; and a succinct one-sided conversation designed to spur them to action.
In contrast to other types of advertising, outdoor ads were designed with the fast-moving traveler in mind. The collection documents well the evolution of the billboard's attempt to reach those on the move, especially drivers. With careful thought to what would quickly provoke interest, advertisers presented a huge range of thought from text-free images of abstract artwork to direct discourse (e.g. Vote for Nixon). Because posters were displayed for only limited time periods, and because their physical size makes them impractical to store, photography is the primary method of capturing billboard images. Most billboard photos - whether print or slide - were created to document the work of the company which posted them for their business use.
Within the Slide Library, the creative output of many outdoor advertising companies is documented, although particular creators of many of the ads are unknown. Foster and Kleiser is well represented in the collection. Other companies named in the collection include Naegele, Pacific, Turner, Eller, Donnelly, Columbus, General Outdoor, Patrick, Gannett, Lamar, United, and many others. Thousands of national campaigns are represented, but many local ads are present as well. Outdoor formats range from 19th century posters to "multi-vision" boards that automatically change views with the use of three-sided boards. Most images are of actual billboards, posters, and other outdoor advertising formats in the field, while a sizable portion are just images of the ad design itself with a plain background. There are some slides of stock posters ( "Your brand name here" ) and other forms of outdoor advertising such as bus cards, street furniture, and truck side advertising. The vast majority of the advertisements are in English.
The first three series make up the bulk of the collection: the Award Nominees Series, the Chronological Series, and the Topical Series (by far the largest of the three). These series are made up almost completely of slides showing advertisements, usually in billboard format. All series are described further within the container list. The only other series with a sizable number of advertisements is the International Posters Series. This is where the largest concentration of international ads is found, although there are a few scattered within the other main series. Ads may also be found scattered throughout the Presentations and Presentation Slides Series.
Several additional small series contain images of related content, providing support and context to the advertisements. These include the Construction and Creation Series, the Artwork Series, the Street Scenes and Approaches Series, and the Other Outdoor Advertising Related Images Series. The Presentations and Presentation Slides Series adds insight by showing some of the internal conversation between directors and trainees, advertisers and advertising creators, and more.
The most direct route to locate any identified ad is through the Resource for Outdoor Advertising Description (ROAD) database, available in early 2003. Information about most slides in the collection has been added to this database. Researchers will be able to search for specific attributes of ads such as brand or company name, product type, and headline, as well as other types of information including slide number, date, collection name, image type, image color, outdoor advertising type, and special notes. Many database records also contain a searchable field with the outdoor advertising company's name (posting company), a field indicating if the billboard is in a rural or urban setting, information on the presence of women, children, ethnic individuals, or famous people in the ad, and the billboard's geographic location. Various slide series were entered into the database differently. Multiple searches may be required for comprehensive searching. For more information, consult Research Services Staff (special-collections@duke.edu).
For more contextual information, use this collection in conjunction with the Outdoor Advertising Association of America Records, especially that collection's Physical Structure Series, and Photographs, Slides, and Negatives Series. Closely related collections in the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library include the John Brennan Outdoor Advertising Survey Reports, the John Paver Papers, the John Browning Papers, the Duplex Advertising Co. Records, the H.E. Fisk Collection of War Effort Mobilization Campaigns, the Outdoor Advertising Association of America Records, the Outdoor Advertising Poster Design Collection, the Garrett Orr Papers, the R.C. Maxwell Company Records, the Howard Scott Papers, and the Strobridge Lithographing Company Advertisements.
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Subject Headings

These are searchable subject entries for this collection. Performing a search on these subjects in the Duke University Libraries online catalog will bring up other related research materials.
  • Advertising awards.
  • Advertising--Brand name products.
  • Advertising Council.
  • Advertising--History.
  • Advertising layout and typography.
  • Advertising, Outdoor--Awards--United States.
  • Advertising, Outdoor--Design and construction.
  • Advertising, Outdoor--Posters.
  • Advertising, Outdoor--United States.
  • Advertising--Posters.
  • Advertising, Public service--United States.
  • Audio cassettes.
  • Billboards.
  • Billboards--Design and construction.
  • Billboards--United States.
  • Brand name products--Marketing.
  • Commercial art.
  • Commercial art--Awards--United States.
  • Commercial art--United States.
  • Foster and Kleiser Company.
  • General Outdoor Advertising Co.
  • OBIE awards.
  • Outdoor Advertising Association of America.
  • Poster, American--20th century--United States.
  • Posters--Design.
  • Posters--United States.
  • Signs and signboards.
  • Slides.
  • Transparencies.
  • John W. hartman Center for Sales, Advertising & Marketing History.
List of Series in Collection
Award Nominees Series, 1965-1968, 1983-1987 and undated
Chronological Series, 1891-1994 and undated
Topical Series, undated
International Posters Series, 1925-1983, bulk mid-late 1960s, especially 1969
Construction and Creation Series, 1950s-1980s and undated
Artwork Series, 1956-1973 and undated
Street Scenes and Approaches Series, 1930s-1980s and undated
Other Outdoor Advertising Related Images Series, ca. 1910-1985 and undated
Presentations and Presentation Slides Series, 1960s-1980s and undated
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Detailed Description of Collection

Award Nominees Series, 1965-1968, 1983-1987 and undated

These slides (labeled with "SLA" prefix) were submitted to the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA) specifically as nominees for the national award program, most recently known as the OBIE awards. Member companies and advertisers submitted what they felt to be their best work for this national competition. The first National Contest and Exhibit of Outdoor Advertising Art was presented by the Outdoor Advertising Department of the Ad Council of the Chicago Association of Commerce in 1930. Later, sponsorship appears to have been provided by the Art Directors Club of Chicago, and perhaps other industry organizations. The Institute of Outdoor Advertising (IOA) was involved starting in 1965 until its merger with the OAAA, which continues "the OBIE" awards competition today. The OBIE award is patterned from the ancient Egyptian "obelisk," considered by many to be the earliest form of outdoor advertising. Award categories varied by year but early groupings often included Posters, Painted Bulletins, Campaigns, and Public Service (Kerwin H. Fulton medal award). Later, the number of categories grew to include emerging formats such as transit advertising and product type categories.
The competition has been known by a variety of names in the collection including the "National Competition," the "Outdoor Advertising Competition," and later, the "OBIEs." Winners were published in a serial, issued also under several different names: Advertising Outdoors, 100 Best Posters, Poster Annual, Outdoor Annual, National Competition of Outdoor Advertising Art, Outdoor Advertising Competition, and OBIE Awards (consult Duke's online catalog). These publications indicate that ads posted in one calendar year were usually eligible for the award presented the following year (recent winners can be found on OAAA's website: www.oaaa.org). Unfortunately, labeling within the collection and publications was unclear as to whether a specified year is a posting date or an award year. Years given in the list below are taken from original slide sleeves and containers. For more information on national outdoor advertising awards, consult the publications listed above, the online catalog, and RBMSCL Research Services Staff.
While a sizable series, only a relatively small portion of many decades of national competition nominees are represented here. It has not been determined with certainty whether the outdoor industry sponsored any awards from 1973 to 1982, but the OBIE award was not awarded during that time. This may explain most of the gap in slides from 1969 through 1982. Some transparencies also are included in this series. Labeled yellow slips were found attached to original slide sleeves, perhaps referring to slides removed at one point. Information on these slips was transferred to acid-free paper and clipped to the new archival sleeve. Some images are marked as being winners in a particular category, but most slides or sleeves have no such marking. Old notebook designations (A-1, A-2...) were maintained on the slide sleeves. Old notebooks were listed in the preliminary boxlist as follows: A-1: 33rd-35th National Competition (1965-1967); A-2: 1984; A-3: 1984; A-4: 1985; A-5: 1985; A-6: 1986; A-7: 1986; A-8: 1986; A-9: 1987; A-10: 1987; A-11: 1987; A-12: Various Designs and Awards. Hard copies of old boxlists may be found in this repository's inventory drawers.
Slides are arranged by award competition dates and were numbered in that order, all with the prefix "SLA." In this series only, slides inserted after most had already been numbered were assigned a number with an alphabetical suffix so all slides following would not have to be renumbered.

Box AW1
1965: 33rd National Competition of Outdoor Advertising Art
SLA0001-SLA0086
1966: 34th National Competition of Outdoor Advertising Art
SLA0087-SLA0164
1967: 35th National Competition of Outdoor Advertising Art
SLA0165-SLA0261
1968: 36th Outdoor Advertising Competition
SLA0262-SLA0277
1983/84: OBIE Award Competition
SLA0278-SLA0327
Box AW2
1983/84: OBIE Award Competition
SLA0328-SLA0824(A-J)
Box AW3
1985: OBIE Award Competition
SLA0825-SLA1469
Box AW4
1985: OBIE Award Competition
SLA1470-SLA1524
1985/86: OBIE Award Competition
SLA1525-SLA2046
Box AW5
1985/86: OBIE Award Competition
SLA2047-SLA2545(A-L)
1986/87: OBIE Award Competition
SLA2546-SLA2677
Box AW6
1986/87: OBIE Award Competition
SLA2678-SLA3279(A-L)
Box AW7
1986/87: OBIE Award Competition
SLA3280-SLA3575
Miscellaneous Nominees
SLA3576-SLA3975

Chronological Series, 1891-1994 and undated

The Chronological Series slides ("SLD" and "SLG" slides) are roughly in chronological order within each box. The earlier images have a higher concentration of poster advertisements as opposed to billboards. The series is almost completely made up of advertisement slides, but there are also some street scenes and a few other slides that could be tied to a specific era.

Box CH1
1891-1950
SLD0001-SLD0740
Box CH2
1946-1957
SLD0741-SLD1420
Box CH3
1950-1960s
SLD1421-SLD2100
Box CH4
1951-1956
SLD2101-SLD2860
Box CH5
1951-1960
SLD2861-SLD3660
Box CH6
1952-1960
SLD3661-SLD4520
Box CH7
1955-1962
SLD4521-SLD5440
Box CH8
1950-1962
SLD5441-SLD6240
Box CH9
1960-1963
SLD6241-SLD7080
Box CH10
1961-1963
SLD7081-SLD7780
Box CH11
1959-1963
SLD7781-SLD8620
Box CH12
1961-1964
SLD8621-SLD9460
Box CH13
1964
SLD9461-SLD9999
SLG0001-SLG0281
Box CH14
1964-1965
SLG0282-SLG1096
Box CH15
1965-1970
SLG1097-SLG1777
Box CH16
1965-1970
SLG1781-SLG2520
Box CH17
1966-1984(no slides for the date span 1976-1983)
SLG2521-SLG3380
Box CH18
1971-1989(no slides for the date span 1986-1988)
SLG3381-SLG4160
Box CH19
1981-1987
SLG4161-SLG4860
Box CH20
1987-1988
SLG4861-SLG5520
Box CH21
1988-1989
SLG5521-SLG6400
Box CH22
1989-1990
SLG6401-SLG7300
Box CH23
1990-1992
SLG7301-SLG8280
Box CH24
1992-1993
SLG8281-SLG9180
Box CH25
1993-1994
SLG9181-SLG9880

Topical Series, undated

The Topical Series is the largest group of advertisement slides in the collection and is organized by product or service type. It has been maintained in two separate but similar subseries, the second being the larger of the two. To provide meaningful organizational categories for sometimes vague products, issues, and services, each category within each subseries is in effect one of three things, (1) a product type (food, cars, etc.), (2) a sponsoring organization (armed forces, liquor stores, etc.), or (3) an ad type (public service, political ads, etc.). Read through the entire list to target a search before browsing through boxes. Advertisements are often arranged into subgroups and then alphabetically by brand name within the groups listed below. For the second subseries, see category descriptions appended to this document before searching. A large percentage of the slides are undated but range from at least 1940 through 1988. There are probably earlier images in this series as well that could not be dated precisely.


Subseries I
The first subseries (Subseries I, "SLP" and "SLQ" slides) is roughly organized into groups according to product types listed below. Some of the "Miscellaneous" groupings are extensive and should be consulted in a comprehensive search. These slides have been maintained in their original order. Topics may appear in more than one box.

Box TP1
SLP0001-SLP0740
US Armed Forces
Boys Scouts
Ad Council, Public Service
Alcoholic Beverages (non-beer)
Box TP2
SLP0741-SLP1540
Alcoholic Beverages (non-beer) continued
Liquor Stores
Beer (roughly in alphabetical order by brand name)
A-Falstaff
Box TP3
SLP1541-SLP2360
Beer continued
Falstaff - Pearl
Box TP4
SLP2361-SLP3140
Beer continued
Pearl - Wiedemann's
Miscellaneous brands
Box TP5
SLP3141-SLP3840
Beer continued
Miscellaneous brands
Alcoholic Beverages (non-beer)
Automotive/Motorcycles (roughly in alphabetical order by manufacturer/dealer)
American Motors - Ford
Box TP6
SLP3841-SLP4600
Automotive/Motorcycles continued
Ford - Honda
Miscellaneous
Hyundai - Yugo
Miscellaneous
Box TP7
SLP4601-SLP5180
Automotive/Motorcycles continued
Car Parts and Service
Tires
Car Parts
Car Rental
Financial Services (primarily banks/insurance roughly in alphabetical order)
Ahmanson Mortgage - First National Bank
Box TP8
SLP5181-SLP5780
Financial Services continued
First National Bank - Pittsburgh National
Watertown - Zions
Pittsburgh National - Zions
Credit Cards
Miscellaneous financial
Non-alcoholic Beverages (esp. soft drinks including mixers; roughly in alphabetical order)
AandW - Coca-Cola
Box TP9
SLP5781-SLP6460
Non-alcoholic Beverages continued
Coca-Cola - 7-Up
Miscellaneous
Juice and Coffee
Tobacco (primarily cigarettes roughly in alphabetical order)
Basic - Kent
Box TP10
SLP6461-SLP7080
Tobacco continued
Kent - Winston
Amusement Parks/Farms
Books
Miscellaneous (especially products pertaining to entertainment including publications, gasoline, casinos, electronics, retail, alcohol, books, record albums, television shows, celebrity/concert appearances, movies, mouthwash, circuses, fairs, miniature golf, lottery, magazines, museums, and symphonies)
Newspapers
Pet Shops
Animal Parks/Exhibits
Sporting Goods, Events, and Teams
Playhouses, Studios, and Zoos
Movies
Radio and Television Stations/Shows
Box TP11
SLP7081-SLP7700
Radio and Television Stations/Shows continued
Pet/Animal Feed
Food
Bakery Items
Bread
Butter
Buttermilk
Candy, Snacks, and Gum
Box TP12
SLP7701-SLP8320
Food continued
Candy, Snacks, and Gum
Cereal and Breakfast Foods
Cheese Products
Eggs
Flour
Fruit
Ice Cream and Popsicles
Jelly and Baby Food
Ketchup (catsup)
Margarine
Mayonnaise
Meat, Fish Products, and Rice
Box TP13
SLP8321-SLP9040
Food continued
Meat, Fish Products, and Rice
Milk/Dairy Products
Mustard
Nuts
Peanut butter
Pickles
Potato Chips, Crackers, and Snack Foods
Salad Dressing
Potato Chips
Salt
Sour Cream
Sugar
Box TP14
SLP9041-SLP9660
Food continued
Sugar
Vegetables
Jell-O Products
Heinz Products
Shortening
Miscellaneous
Aluminum Foil
Gasoline and Automotive (primarily gasoline/oil; roughly alphabetical by brand; includes some auto parts and service)
Amoco - Hancock
Box TP15
SLP9661-SLP9999
Gasoline and Automotive continued
Hancock - Shell
SLQ0001-SLQ0300
Gasoline and Automotive continued
Shell - Signal
Box TP16
SLQ0301-SLQ1000
Gasoline and Automotive continued
Shell - Union 76 (includes Standard/Chevron)
Miscellaneous
Pain and Cold Medicine
Oral/Personal Hygiene
Eyewear
Hair and Skin Products
Dental and Medical
Miscellaneous Personal Products and Retail (Includes medicines, bath, health, and beauty products, pharmacies, beauty salons, and sunscreen)
Box TP17
SLQ1001-SLQ1620
Miscellaneous Personal Products and Retail continued
Restaurants (roughly alphabetical)
Acapulco - Der Wienerschnitzel
Ice Cream Shops
Allenhurst - Zim's
Apparel, Apparel Stores and other Retail (roughly alphabetical; includes some watches, cosmetics, electronics, shopping centers, and other department store consumer goods purchases)
Anell's - Robinson's
Box TP18
SLQ1621-SLQ2320
Apparel, Apparel Stores, and other Retail continued
Robinson's - Zayre
Miscellaneous
Footwear
Miscellaneous
Grocery Stores (roughly in alphabetical order)
AG Stores - Winn Dixie
Airlines (roughly in alphabetical order)
Alaska Airlines - Western Airlines
Box TP19
SLQ2321-SLQ2980
Airlines continued
Western Airlines - World Airways
Transportation and Travel (Includes public transportation, bicycles, mopeds, travel agencies, cruises, vacation destinations, commerce/convention destinations, resorts, miscellaneous attractions, and shopping centers)
Hotels
Moving and Storage
Utility Companies (often ads featuring appliances)
Heating and Air Conditioning
Electronics and Appliances
Photographic Equipment
Laundry Detergent and Dry Cleaning
Household Cleaners
Hosiery, Footwear, and Apparel
Florists
Box TP20
SLQ2981-SLQ3597
Florists continued
Construction and Home Improvement (Includes building materials, floor and wall coverings, decorators, furniture stores, and mattresses)
Insurance
Lawn Care
Metals (Includes Aluminum, Steel Buildings)
Data Processing and Printers
Paper Products (Includes napkins, tissues, wax paper, and toilet tissue)
Paint
Plumbing
Political Ads
Real Estate
Campers
Miscellaneous (Includes massage school, zippers, and trading stamps)
Yellow Pages
Subseries II
These slides were grouped into industry standard categories. Please see category descriptions at the end of this document to facilitate your search. Often, like materials are further grouped within these categories. For ads where identity of the product was unclear, a small "Product Unclear" category was created at the end of this subseries. This subseries contains slide numbers with the following prefixes: SLS, SLT, SLU, SLV, SLW, SLX, SLY, SLZ, SLJ, SLK, and SLL.
Box TP21
Apparel
SLS0001-SLS0274
Retail
SLS0275-SLS0693
Box TP22
Retail
SLS0694-SLS1353
Box TP23
Retail
SLS1354-SLS1413
Retail / Apparel
SLS1414-SLS1649
Business and Technology
SLT0001-SLT0280
Box TP24
Business and Technology
SLT0281-SLT0980
Box TP25
Business and Technology
SLT0981-SLT1640
Box TP26
Business and Technology
SLT1641-SLT2340
Box TP27
Business and Technology
SLT2341-SLT2754
Amusement and Entertainment
SLU0001-SLU0140
Box TP28
Amusement and Entertainment
SLU0141-SLU0820
Box TP29
Transportation and Travel
SLV0001-SLV0500
Box TP30
Transportation and Travel
SLV0501-SLV1200
Box TP31
Transportation and Travel
SLV1201-SLV1526
Automotive
SLW0001-SLW0280
Box TP32
Automotive
SLW0281-SLW0980
Box TP33
Automotive
SLW0981-SLW1620
Box TP34
Automotive
SLW1621-SLW1845
Consumer Goods and Services
SLX0001-SLX0380
Box TP35
Consumer Goods and Services
SLX0381-SLX1020
Box TP36
Consumer Goods and Services
SLX1021-SLX1660
Box TP37
Consumer Goods and Services
SLX1661-SLX2072
Beverages
SLY0001-SLY0080
Box TP38
Beverages
SLY0081-SLY0560
Box TP39
Beverages
SLY0561-SLY1020
Box TP40
Beverages
SLY1021-SLY1427
Box TP41
Beverages
SLY1428-SLY1947
Box TP42
Beverages
SLY1948-SLY2467
Box TP43
Beverages
SLY2468-SLY2967
Box TP44
Beverages
SLY2968-SLY3332
Food and Restaurants
SLZ0001-SLZ0100
Box TP45
Food and Restaurants
SLZ0101-SLZ0720
Box TP46
Food and Restaurants
SLZ0721-SLZ1375
Box TP47
Public Service
SLJ0001-SLJ0544
Box TP48
Media
SLK0001-SLK0660
Box TP49
Media
SLK0661-SLK1113
Product Unclear
SLL0001-SLL0117

International Posters Series, 1925-1983, bulk mid-late 1960s, especially 1969

Presumably, some of the ads in this series ("SLM" slides) were submitted for an International category of the OBIE awards program, a category added in more recent years. They are often in a smaller poster format to accommodate larger pedestrian audiences abroad. Some products featured include alcoholic beverages, concerts, cheese, travel, London transportation, beverages, museum exhibitions, festivals, ice cream, newspapers, and the Moscow Olympics. The slides are arranged by slide number.
Box TT1
SLM0001-SLM0621

Construction and Creation Series, 1950s-1980s and undated

This small series ("SLE" slides) provides perhaps the most context for the creative process. More than just the finished product, these slide images show ads at every stage of creation from idea boards to finishing touches. Most slides show images of people working on billboards, but there are also graphics showing billboard dimensions or various billboard types, photo images of workrooms, workers at worktables, workers with equipment doing actual construction, cranes hanging large billboard segments, photos of props used to put together an image, shots of billboards at various stages of completion, close shots of trim pieces, and more. The slides are arranged by slide number.
Box TT2
SLE0001-SLE0135

Artwork Series, 1956-1973 and undated

This series contains slide images of original artwork ("SLF" slides), usually not in any advertisement format. Artwork was sometimes submitted to OAAA as part of the OBIE Awards program. Many of these slides are labeled with the artist's name such as graphic artist and painter, Luis Gordillo. Other names found in this part of the collection include Eric Lanneau, Luis Perez Minguez, T. Mixta, Boix, A. Heras, E. Borduas, Robert Burns, F.C.B. Cadell, R. McG. Coventry, G.D. Davison, John Duncan, Crawhall, George Henry, J.W. Herald, Hornel, Leslie Hunter, W.Y. MacGregor, J.Q. Pringle, Claude Breeze, Ivan Eyre, Alex Coville, and Opura Benazon. Slides are arranged by slide number.
Box TT2
SLF0001-SLF0208

Street Scenes and Approaches Series, 1930s-1980s and undated

This series ("SLH" slides) contains slides with images of street scenes, often showing long approaches to billboard sites. There are examples of outdoor advertising present, but views are from a distance. These images were used in planning and preparation for construction or to show sites to prospective clients. This series reveals the most outdoor context of time and place for the advertising. While most shots in other series are close-ups of billboards, these photo images almost always show a wider scene. Slides are arranged by slide number.
Box TT2
SLH0001-0131

Other Outdoor Advertising Related Images Series, ca. 1910-1985 and undated

This small series ("SLN" slides) contains slides with images that did not easily fit into other categories. It includes slides of the 1975 Miss America and other campaigns designed to test or prove how well people could remember information from the outdoor medium. Various pieces of art are included, as well as a mock-up of a Signs of the Times publication cover; photographs related to a consumer survey; group portraits from industry meetings, some from as early as the 1910s; print advertisements; and portraits of advertising executives including Burr Robbins. Slides are arranged by slide number.
Box TT2
SLN0001-SLN0091

Presentations and Presentation Slides Series, 1960s-1980s and undated

This series contains slides organized for individual presentations, several with scripts included. The presentations at the start of the series are the most complete. As the list continues, the presentations become less complete (e.g. lacking slides, transcripts, etc.), until only loose slides from presentations are present. The intact presentations at the start of the series were created for a variety of audiences by outdoor executives often as training devices or sales tools for prospective clients. A number of the presentations were put together by the Institute of Outdoor Advertising, the marketing arm of the industry. The scripts and slides provide a mix of information not found in other series, including an introduction to the medium, comparisons to other advertising media, and history of the industry.
Included are some historical images from the early days of outdoor advertising, but the series mostly contains mid to late 20th century images including billboard construction; shots of the creative process; labeled charts indicating the standard billboard sizes; statistics on cost, reach, frequency, and readership; and much more information about the medium in general. Though not indexed in the ROAD database, there are many images of outdoor advertising used as examples in the presentations. Some slides relate to specific companies or campaigns such as Kraft, specific markets such as Birmingham, or certain product types such as insurance or magazines. Many of the loose slides are grouped into at least partial presentations. Three of the scripted presentations have audiocassette recordings included in box PR13. There are duplicate slides in some presentations and so presumably, many were created and used in various presentations according to the need at the time. For database control purposes, individual "SLB" numbers were assigned to whole presentations.
Box PR1
Presentations:
Outdoor Goes to College (SLB0001)
Audio recording of script included in box PR13.
It Pays to be Creative (Institute of Outdoor Advertising [IOA]) (SLB0002)
This presentation is aimed at new creative directors and discusses among other things what makes a good design and how to sell it. Audio recording of script included in box PR13.
Media Insurance (IOA) (SLB0003)   (3 folders)
This presentation seems designed to sell the medium to potential advertisers. Audio recording of script included in box PR13.
Box PR2
Profiles of Outdoor Advertising Readers (Outdoor Advertising Incorporated [OAI]) (SLB0004)
Working Women (Donnelly Adv.) (SLB0005)
Be It Ever So Humble, There?s No Place Like Out-of-Home (IOA) (SLB0006)
A Presentation on Geometrics (Center for Advertising Services, 1976) (SLB0007)
Dialogue Presentation (IOA) (SLB0008)
The Giant (IOA) (SLB0009)
Outdoor for Retailers (SLB0010)
Kraft (SLB0011)
Box PR3
Common Sense (SLB0012)
What?s New Under the Sun (SLB0013)
Miss America ( IOA, [1975?]) (SLB0014)
This presentation features slides of a campaign that tested awareness. The industry used ads with Miss America's name (Shirley Cothran) and subsequent testing as proof of outdoor advertising effectiveness.
IOA Membership (IOA) (SLB0015)
Inflation (IOA) (SLB0016)
Target Group Index (SLB0017)
Best Painted Bulletin Displays - Master General Foods and duplicates (IOA) (SLB0018)
Cole Creative Presentation (SLB0019)
Garrett Orr Presentation (SLB0020)
Box PR4
Take a Look at Birmingham (SLB0021)
Planning an Outdoor Program, Outdoor Seminar, Toronto, Ontario, 10/16/65 (SLB0022)
Presentation to Food Market Institute, 3/25/78 (SLB0023)
Outdoor for Passenger Cars (SLB0024)
Wall-Dog Era and Story of Outdoor Advertising (scripts only) (SLB0025)
Various Presentations (SLB0026 and SLB0027)   (2 folders)
Box PR5
Miscellaneous presentation slides
Box PR6
Miscellaneous presentation slides
Box PR7
Miscellaneous presentation slides
Box PR8
Miscellaneous presentation slides
Box PR9
Miscellaneous presentation slides
Box PR10
Miscellaneous presentation slides
Box PR11
Miscellaneous presentation slides
Box PR12
Glass Presentation Slides
These slides are encased in glass. Most appear to be a part of a presentation by Outdoor Advertising Incorporated including images of ads for 7-Up and Budweiser (Anheuser Busch). There is also a wide variety of street signs, spectaculars, and other signs.
Box PR13
Presentation Scripts on Audiocassette (master and use copies):
Outdoor Goes to College
It Pays to be Creative, F and K (IOA)
Media Insurance, F and K (IOA)